Automobile-locking device.



E. F. STROEH, W, F. POTTS & C. E. TRIMBY.

AUTOMOBILE LOCKING DEVICE.

APPLICATION nuzo Amz. 1911.

1,280,896. Patented Oat. 8, 191&

20 lNVE/VTORfL 8 y Wwm1 my 1 A TTORNEY UNITE STATES PATENT FFICE.

ERNEST F. STROEH AND WILLIAM F. POTTS, OF KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, AND CHARLES E. TBIMBY, OF KANSAS CITY, KANSAS; SAID POTTS AND SAID TRIMBY ASSIGNORS 'I'O SAID STROEH.

AU'lroivioBiLnookinG DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 8, 1918.

App'matitn inea April 2, 191?. SeriaI in). 159,103.

To all whom it camera.-

' Be it known that we, ERNEST F. S riionn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Kansas City, in the county ,Of Jackson and State of Missouri, WieLI'nM F. Po'r'rs, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Kansas City, in'the county of Jackson and State of Missouri, and CHARLES E. TRIMBY, a citieen of the United States, and a resident of Kansas City, in the county of Wyandotte and State of Kansas, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Automo bile-Locking Devices, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to improvements in automobile locl'zing devices. I

The object of our inventio is to provide a novel automobile safety locking device which is simple in construction, which may be readilyapplied to automobiles now on the market, which is cheap to manufacture, not liable to get out of order and durable, and which is efficient in operation.

Our invention is particularl well adapted for holding the gear shifting lever in the neutral position, this effectually reventing the use of the automobile to which it is at! tached, but which will permit of the automobile being readily moved in case of fire or fer any other reason.

The novel features of our invention are hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing, which illustrates our invention, Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view on the line 1'"'l of Fig. 3, showing one form of our invention applied to a shifting lever;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the device, the shifting lever being shown in section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1, the locking members being shown closed, the padlock removed and parts broken away.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the device with the locking members shown in the open position and the padlock removed.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section on the line 55 of Fig. 1. i

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view showing a self-contained locking mechanism for the lockin members. T a

, Fig. 7 is a plan view of what is shown in Fig. 6.

Similar reference characters designate similar parts in the different views.

1 and 2 designate respectively two substantially semi-circular members of a housing adapted to embrace the upper portion of the usual casing 3 in which is. pivotally mounted the gear shifting lever 4 commonlv used on automobiles for controlling the transmission.

5 and 6 designate two horizontal screws which respectively extend through holes provided in diametrically opposite sides of the member 1, and which are respectively fitted in screw-threaded hele's provided in the member 2.

7 and 8 designate two semi-cup shaped locking members, each having a central notch 9 adapted to receive the lever 4. The member 7 is provided at one edge with two laterally extending ears 10 pivoted on a vertical screw 11 which is mounted in a screw threaded hole in the housing member 2, and which has its lower end extending into a recess in the upper side of the screw 5, thereby holding the latter from being turned. The member 8 is provided with an car 12 which is pivoted on the screw 11 intermediate of the cars 10.

For holding the screws 11 and 6 from beingturned, there are provided two screws 13 and 14 which are respectively mounted in downwardly and outward inclined screw threaded holes in the housing member 2, the lower ends of the screws 13 and 14 being extended into recesses provided therefor in the screws 11 and 6 respectively.

lVhen the locking members 7 and 8 are closed, they will cover the screws 13 and 14, thereby preventing their being turned so as to disassemble the parts, by any unauthorized person, when the locking members 7 and 8 are locked in the closed position shown in Fig. 3. When the members 7 and 8 are open, as shown in Fig. 4, the screws 13 and 14 are uncovered. With the members 7 and 8 in the open position, the screws 13 and 14 may be inserted or removed.

The locking members 7 and 8 are provided each with a lateral lug l5 and 16, which in invention shown in Figs. 1 to 5, the members 7 and 8 are provided respectively with two lugs 19 and 20, which, when the members are closed overlap one above the other. The

lug 19 is provided with a transverse hole 21 which is adapted to register with the hole 22 provided through the lug 20, when the members 7 and 8 are in the locking position. When in this position, the hasp 23 of a padlock 24. may be inserted through the holes 21 and 22, thereby locking the members 7 and 8 in engagement with the lever 4, when the latter is in a predetermined position. As shown in the drawing, the notches 9 are located so as to receive the lever 4 when the latter is in the vertical or neutral position, in which position, the engine may be operated without the car running.

In the form of our invention shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the locking members 7 and 8 are provided with two lugs 25 and 26 respectively. The lug 25 of the member 7 has mounted in it a suitable lock 27 adapted to be operated with a key 28, and having a bolt adapted to enter a hole 29 provided in the lug 26, when the members 7 and 8 are in the locking position, for holding the locking members from being swung to the open position.

In assembling the device, the housing members 1 and 2 are made to embrace the head of the lever casing 3, theinner sides of said members being recessed to receive the head. The members 1 and 2 are then se cured to each other with the screws 5 and 6. The screw 14 is then made to engage the screw 6, after which the screw 11 is ex tended through the ears 10 and 12 and made to engage the screw 5. The screw 13 is then made to engage the screw 11, the members 7 and 8 being moved to the open position while this is being done.

If now the lever 4 be swung to the vertical neutral position and the locking members then swung to the closed position, the lever 4 will be embraced, by the members 7 and 8 and will be held from movement providing the locking members 7 and 8 are locked together by means of either of the locking mechanisms already described. The automobile can not then be run with the engine, but it may be freely wheeled about, if desired, to get it out of the way, as in case of fire.

. We do not our invention to -the structures shown and described, as modifications of many kinds may be made with out departing from the spirit of our inven tion.

lVha-t we claim is 1. In an automobile locking device, a housing comprising two members for embracing a shifting lever casing, a screw connecting said two members, a locking member pivoted to said housing and movable thereon to and from a locking position and having means for releasably engaging'and holding a shifting lever in said casing, releasable means for holding the locking member in the locking position, and a screw mounted in said housing and engaging the first named screw so as to hold the latter from turning, the second named screw being covered by said locking member when the latter is in the locking position and uncovered thereby when the locking ,member is swung from the locking position.

I 2. In an automobile locking device, a housing for embracing a shifting lever casing, a locking member movable to and from a locking posit-ion and having means for releasably engaging and holding a shifting lever in said casing, a screw to which the looking member is pivoted engaging said housing, and a second screw mounted in the housing and engaging the first screw to prevent turning of the latter, the second screw being respectively covered and uncovered by said locking member when the latter is in the locking and unlocked positions.

3. In an automobile locking device, a

housing comprising two members adapted to embrace a shifting levercasing, a screw securing said two members together, a seclocking members pivoted on the second screw and movable to ,and from a position in which they are adapted to engage and hold a shifting lever in said casing, and releasable means for locking the two locking members together in the locking position, the third screw being respectively covered and uncovered by one of said locking members when the latter is in the locking and unlocked positions.

A. In an automobile locking device, a housing comprising two members adapted to embrace a shifting lever casing, two screws securing said two members together, two locking members pivoted to said housing and movable to and from a position in which they will be adapted to engage and hold a shifting lever, two screws, on'one of which said locking members are pivoted, mounted in said housing and respectively engaging the first named screws for hold ing them from turning, the other of said one of said locking members covering and second named screws being respectively covuncovering respectively the fifth screw 10 ered and uncovered by one of said locking when in the locked and unlocked positions. members, when the latter is in the locked In testimony whereof We have signed our and the unlocked positions, a fifth screw names to this specification.

mounted in the housing and enga ing the ERNEST F. STROEH. screw on which said locking mem ers are WILLIAM F. POTTS. pivoted for holding the latter from turning, CHARLES E. TRIMBY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. O. 

